Creative Technologist

Hovercraft is a dynamic and innovative creative design firm that partners with brands to craft compelling experiences through design, strategy, and technology. We specialize in creating standout visuals, interactive digital content, and impactful branding solutions that push the boundaries of creativity.

We're looking for a Creative Technologist to join our dev team and help push the studio's work forward across a growing range of mediums. This is a hands-on software development role, but also so much more than that. You'll work closely with our designers, producers, and tech team to build interactive experiences, real-time graphics systems, web projects, video games, and physical installations. You'll prototype, develop, deliver, and support our custom-built technology for these projects. The tech team’s work is centered around software but includes hardware integration, travel, client-facing interactions, and being embedded in the larger creative and problem-solving process.

• →Software Development & Delivery: Build and maintain software systems across client projects and internal tooling as an active contributor on multi-disciplinary project teams.
• →Rapid Prototyping: Develop rapid prototypes for concept validation, client pitches, and discovery.
• →Creative Technology Implementation: Collaborate with designers and animators to bring visual concepts to life with code, which includes user interfaces, animation, generative graphics, and multi-device interactive systems.
• →Application Architecture: Design resilient application architectures that withstand heavy use and scrutiny.
• →Technical Planning & Estimation: Participate in scoping and technical planning for new projects, contributing to architecture decisions and timeline estimates.
• →Experience Design Collaboration: Help shape visitor experiences alongside the design team—research new approaches, raise concerns, and help non-technical stakeholders understand what's possible with technology and related UX patterns.
• →Operational Excellence: Build tools, documentation, and efficiencies for the tech team (and elsewhere in the organization).
• →Cross-Functional Communication: Communicate often and clearly with internal teams, partner agencies, and clients via presentations, diagrams & documentation, and creative brainstorming sessions.
• →Installation & Client Support: Support installations on-site when projects require it. This includes travel and client-facing interactions, so comfort in those settings is a must.
• →Project Planning & Coordination: Plan and communicate the needs of a project to the team; for example, SAAS subscriptions & pricing, venue requirements for installations (power/internet), and fabrication integration specifics when working with build partners.

• Experience: 5+ years of professional experience in a creative technology, interactive development, or similar role; agency, studio, or production company experience is strongly preferred
• Creative Insight: A portfolio that demonstrates a range of work across mediums
• Education: Bachelor's degree in CS, Interactive Media, Design, or a related field (or equivalent hands-on experience)

• Design & Quality Mindset: Strong design and craft sensibilities; understands what “Hovercraft quality” means, both visually and technically.
• Ownership & Accountability: Takes initiative, makes decisions autonomously, estimates and manages work effectively, and advocates for timelines, testing, and quality.
• Communication & Collaboration: Proactively shares progress, flags blockers early, keeps stakeholders informed, and works effectively within cross-functional teams and production pipelines.
• Adaptability & Resilience: Maintains a positive, solutions-oriented attitude while navigating changing scope, creative direction, technical constraints, and tight deadlines across multiple projects.
• Curiosity & Continuous Learning: Demonstrates a genuine passion for learning, experimentation, R&D, prototyping, and exploring new tools and creative technologies.

The total average salary range for this position is $120,000-$140,000 annually, plus comprehensive benefits. Job level and actual compensation will be decided based on factors including, but not limited to, individual qualifications assessed during the interview process (such as skills and prior industry experience, potential impact), market demands, and specific work location. The listed range is a guideline, and the range for this role may be modified.

Hovercraft is a remote-first company, working primarily on Pacific and Mountain time. Anyone/anywhere in the United States is encouraged to apply. You must be eligible to work in the US. 

At this time, we are unable to support employment arrangements that require E-Verify participation, including STEM OPT extensions. Additionally, we are not currently offering employment visa sponsorship for this role. Candidates must be authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis without current or future employer sponsorship requirements.

We appreciate your interest in our team and encourage candidates whose work authorization aligns with these requirements to apply.

We use AI-assisted tools solely to help identify and highlight keywords related to critical design skills and relevant experience within applications. These tools support our recruiting team by improving consistency and efficiency; they do not make hiring decisions. All applications are reviewed by humans, and AI is not used in a discriminatory manner or to evaluate personal characteristics unrelated to job requirements.